The disciples came to him and asked, ‘Why do you speak to the people in parables?’ He replied, ‘Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. This is why I speak to them in parables: ‘Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: ‘ “You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.” But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.
Matthew 13:10-17 NIVUK
Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet: ‘I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.’
Matthew 13:34-35 NIVUK
When my daughter was small, there was a time of day she loved (and, I have to say, we quite enjoyed too). She was an avid watcher of CBeebies, a TV channel specifically created for pre-school children.
And it was pretty good and (back then anyway) largely safe. If we needed to do things around the house, we could leave her with some toys and CBeebies and she would be perfectly happy.
But bedtime (between six and seven in the evening) was always good. Gentle, slow-paced TV shows, followed by a bedtime story that encouraged the young kids to go to bed... such a great idea.
The stories, of course, were not just meaningless fun. They always taught a principle or a behaviour – as all kids stories do.
They are, in effect, a diluted down parable.
So what is a parable?
It’s more than a nice story. It’s more than a moral tale. It’s a short story, saying or proverb that has a thinly disguised spiritual meaning. Those who expend a little effort to divine its meaning understand it; those who have no interest do not.
As the theologian William Barclay put it:
‘The parable conceals truth from those who are either too lazy to think or too blinded by prejudice to see. It puts the responsibility fairly and squarely on the individual. It reveals truth to him who desires truth; it conceals truth from him who does not wish to see the truth.’
Or, as David Guzik puts it, ‘The same sun that softens the wax hardens the clay; and so the very same gospel message that humbles the honest heart and leads to repentance may also harden the heart of the dishonest listener and confirm that one in their path of disobedience.’
In other words, Jesus was not being deliberately obscure, or concealing the way of salvation. That would not be aligned with God’s will that all be saved (1 Timothy 2:3-4).
However, they were thought-provoking and, if you like ‘lightly encrypted’, so that a genuinely interested inquirer could understand them, but someone who had no interest could not.
This was definitely the right thing to do, given the circumstances.
Jesus is talking here about the Kingdom of Heaven. That puts him at odds with the Roman Emperor and his sycophantic proxies, both in the governor’s palace and the temple. He is claiming that there is another kingdom to which people should show their loyalty, and therefore another king apart from Caesar.
It’s no wonder these parables were not direct.
So how do we approach them?
Firstly, we remember that they were a product of their time, using pictures from Jesus’ environment. Interpreting them using current knowledge and culture is just plain wrong.
Secondly, we remember what they are. They are a simple story or illustration with a simple meaning. Going digging looking for hidden, esoteric meanings is a fool’s game. Parables are easy to understand. They have a single meaning. If you find the meaning, you understand the parable.
Thirdly, we study them with the goal of obeying them. Not with showing ourselves to be super-clever in finding some new interpretation. That is nonsense. We understand their meaning, we apply it to our day and then we obey it. Simple.
Parables are a fantastic way of communicating. They are easy to understand, regardless of our educational level. They convey a simple truth. They are pithy and easy to remember.
But above all, the truth within them must ve applied and obeyed.
And that is what we will seek to do.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, as I approach Your Word, I do so humbly, looking not for some ‘hidden truth’ to boast about, but instead for a simple truth to remember and obey. Speak to me as I begin this study. Draw me closer to you. Amen.
Questions
1. What is a parable? What is it not?
2. Why do you think Jesus used parables?
3. What is the purpose of a parable?
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